4 Ways To Overcome Social Anxiety

Somewhere around 13% of the world’s population suffers from a crippling, debilitating affliction called social anxiety. This fear of social situations can impact daily life in profound ways, sometimes causing people to stay in their homes and not communicate with others. There are ways of overcoming social anxiety.

1. Work with a therapist you trust.

If you find yourself stopped from doing things you love, find a therapist you feel like you can trust to help you work through it. There are therapists who specialize in anxiety disorders.

2. Consider self-help.

If you feel like you’re not ready to see a specialist, consider a self-help manual like the Managing Social Anxiety Workbook.

3. Practice being social.

It might sound silly, but you can work at overcoming social anxiety through practice. Make a list of things that cause you anxiety and rate them on a scale from 1 to 10, 1 being the least anxiety provoking and 10 being the most. Now start doing some of the things you rate 1, 2, or 3. These things might be going for a ride on the bus or saying hi to a stranger in a park as you walk by. Slowly work your way up to things that cause you greater anxiety.

4. Practice yoga.

Yoga helps teach us how to breathe intentionally and deeply, and this kind of mindful deep breathing can really help you get through anxiety-provoking situations before you even encounter them.

Somewhere around 13% of the world’s population suffers from a crippling, debilitating affliction called social anxiety. This fear of social situations can impact daily life in profound ways, sometimes causing people to stay in their homes and not communicate with others. There are ways of overcoming social anxiety.